Ennerdale Parents Defend Local School against Vandals

For every protest about service delivery there are criminals that want to take advantage, and the Johannesburg protests for housing are no different.

Last week a group of Ennerdale parents and community members were informed that vandals wanted to gain access to the local primary school. The vandals had intended to loot the school and burn it down. Within a few minutes, the community had rallied together and made it clear to the vandals that they would not tolerate such behaviour. The vandals also threatened to burn down the local clinic but the community once again made it clear that the vandals would not succeed.

The protests for housing, which began last week, had subsided after the protest leaders agreed to negotiate with government officials. The protests had started in Eldorado Park and rapidly spread to numerous surrounding areas, including Ennerdale, bringing Johannesburg to a standstill.

The community members who defended the school said that they were fighting for housing and do not condone the destruction of the existing infrastructure. Valerie Moses of the Ennerdale Stakeholder’s Association called on the community to help protect schools and other institutions from being damaged.